A Second Chance
by Vivienna
Summary: HGGL Set after Wake the Dead. John and Shayera gets zapped to another dimension for some time during a fight. Will they come to reignite their love?.or does vixen mean too much to John?
1. Chapter 1

A piercing shriek filled the air and she brought down her mace hard on the assailant's head. It crumbled where it stood.

Shayera looked around, adrenaline pumping through her veins. It felt damn good. She was sick of feeling helpless, feeling jealous, sick of trying to redeem herself and most of all…she was sick of the sympathetic looks the others kept throwing at her. She was a warrior and the battlefield was so familiar to her that she wanted to cling to it what with all this uncertainty in her life.

"Heads up! Incoming!!!" She heard John bark before he whipped up a huge hammer with his energy ring and pounded the two Uranians to oblivion, minutes before they blasted her.

_Hmmff…no way I'm gonna play the damsel in distress John_

She took off and proceeded to pound the next unlucky alien to cross her path. Just then Superman swooped down and ordered them to retreat and get back into the javelin.

_"What???!! We're gonna back down now??"_She questioned, puzzled at the order from the man of steel.

_"Theres too many of them…we need backup_", came his reply.

_Ok…so there were some 200 ships and they kept coming but to give up now??...All she wanted to do was to vent all her pent up frustrations from the past few months and its all going to be over before she even got warmed up. _

Just then she heard John's voice again "Shayera!!!!!!!!!!!!". He reached her before she could turn around and then there was a blast of blinding white light and everything went black.

When she finally woke up, her head felt like someone had pounded her with her own mace. She sat up slowly and squinted. _Where am i?_

It looked like she was another planet, a glowing red planet. _Great.__ Just great.__ N__ow she could __ spend an eternity here feeling sorry for herself…with no one to pound._Just then she heard a groan from beside her. She whipped around and saw John lying beside her. She reached out instinctively to caress him but stopped herself in time. _What was I thinking? Who cares if he feels like hell? Let Mari take care of that._

_Mari. The name was like bile in her mouth. _She looked at him now..lying there, his forehead bruised. That face in her dreams night after night…giving her the courage to face the future..a reason to go on.

_When she came back…__she had looked__ forward to seeing John again. To let him know that a day hadn't passed that she didn't think of him. To tell him that she lov… No. She wouldn't go there. He has moved on. She would swallow her own pain and lick her wounds in private. But she would never let him know that he broke her heart__. All their hopes and dreams about the future…a future they had imagined together so long ago…dashed. He didn't even look for her…didn't care that she was dying inside without him. He just moved on.. not even a glance over the shoulder. It hurt so very much. But no..she would never let __him know as long as she lived. Sh__e loved him too much to destroy his new-found happiness._

"Shayera? " she heard him call her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to fight the tears that threatened to flow.

Feeling better she turned to him ," John…are you ok? " He was already up and reached out his hand for her. She got up without taking it.

"It looks like we're stranded here." His radiant eyes were scanning the desolate place for any activity at all.

They were completely exhausted and decided to make camp to rest and scout the area later.

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"Can you track them?" superman asked the martian impatiently. Shayera and lantern just disappeared after the uranians blasted them with some sort of machine. "Are they alive?"

"I sense that they are alive but the connection is too faint. I cannot tell their location. They could be in another dimension." The martian explained patiently.

"Lets just wait for the uranian to wake up. I'll get it out of him." Batman suggested, his eyes narrowing as if he knew exactly what he was about to do.

"But we don't know if Joh..they would survive the wait", Vixen quipped. She was completely unnerved at the thought of John being somewhere faraway with her…of all people. Ever since Shayera had returned John hadn't been himself. He was more withdrawn from her and she didn't like it one bit. She wasn't about to lose John…not now…after pursuing him for that long..she had him. He took to her and things were going great until she came back.

"We have no choice at the moment Vixen," We can only hope that they remain safe until we find a way to bring them back. With that the Martian turned back to the computer and resumed his work.

_Don't worry boo. I guess I'll just have to seduce you all over again when you get back. I bet I'm a lot better at that than she is._


	2. Chapter 2

They sat in comforting silence in front of the fire they made a few minutes ago. Each deep in their own thoughts…about the other. John was first to break the silence.

"How have you been?" She turned and looked at him. He was staring at the fire as if mesmerized.

"Physically?..i'm fine. Emotionally? I'm doing ok i suppose… given that a part of me feels like it has been torn and burnt. I guess that part would be dignity and self-respect" She softly added "…I suppose that's how most traitors feel.

"Don't say that. No one thinks of you as a traitor…at least not anymore. You did what you had to do."

Shayera sighed. "Well I guess we are our harshest critic."

He remained silent.

"Do you forgive me? Did you..on that day?" she asked quietly.

He froze. "I forgave you a long time ago Shayera. Yes…on the day you left."

Silence again.

"Then why didn't you wait for me?" She asked unable to contain her anguish.

He turned slowly and saw the tears flow down her cheeks. He felt a familiar pain…deep in his heart. Something that he had worked hard to bury all this time.

Before he could reply, she stood up and wiped her tears away. "I'm sorry. Forget this conversation ever took place. We have to find a way to get back to Earth."

He knew she was putting on a guard to get rid of her hurt. He let it go. He wasn't ready to address this either.

She turned to him.."We have to scour the area anything that might help us get back..maybe a portal or something that got us here in the first place."

"On it."

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"So you're saying that this equipment opened an inter-dimensional portal and Shayera and John fell into it?" Superman asked.

"That's right," Batman replied as he continued to tinker with the broken equipment. " We have to figure out how to fix it."

" Can't the uranian do it?" Vixen asked impatiently. Batman turned to her. She refused to be let out of the loop in this investigation although the Martian kept telling her that she would be of no help in this. He knew she was eager to get John back because it threatened their relationship. A relationship she established easily when she found out John was broken hearted over Shayera. She had seduced him under the pretense of sympathy. Batman felt disdainful towards her but didn't show it. He didn't like women who exploited a situition in order to gain from it.

Rather he fancied women with honor. Who wore their womanhood with pride and stood eye to eye with men. _Of course, it would help__ greatly if she had dark hair and stunning blue eyes._

He shook off the thought and replied curtly, "The Uranian is a soldier, not an engineer. He has no knowledge of the circuitry of the equipment. Isn't that right J'ohn?"

"Affirmative."

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Hours later, Shayera swooped down and sat on a rock. John followed suit. It was an exhausting search. "That was a whole lot of nothing," Shayera exclaimed.

"Guess we're stuck here for a while longer," John replied.

"Pity for you…you have loved ones waiting for you," she said wistfully.

"Shayera…all of us see you as family."

She looked down.

"No they don't John. They don't. Do you think I don't know what they say about me? I'll always be a traitor to them…just a dirty hawk. You shouldn't have followed me here. It doesn't matter for me. I'll be alone everywhere I go. I don't belong anywhere. But you have someone you love waiting for you."

He was silent for a long moment.

"I have a loved one right next to me…and I'm leaving this place dead or alive with her."

She looked at him..her green eyes liquid with tears that threatened to flow. "You have her now John. You don't need me."

He knew there was no hope for it.. He had to address it now. It was something he dreaded all this time.

"You left me Shayera. You walked away from me. I loved you with all my being. I was willing to forgive you everything but you didn't give me a chance. Do you really believe that I moved on easily? Do you have any idea how many nights I spent staring into the sky…hoping to see you?" He turned away, tears building up in his own eyes.

"Vixen..she was my solace. She gave me hope ..that my wounds will heal. That I would finally move on. That I can start to smile again. And I was healing…then you came back. What do you want me to do Shayera? Tell Vixen that I don't need her anymore? Turn my back on her like you did to me?"

He turned back to her.

"I can't do that Shayera. I can't put her through that. I know what it feels like. I admit…I love you. I always have and I always will…but you're too late. So lets just live with fond memories of each other and move on with our lives."

She cried then…streams of long-contained tears streaming down her beautiful face. Her heart aching with anguish…she let it all out. He cried too.

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**IS that really John's decision? Will he have a change of heart? Will they manage to get back home?**

**Well..you just gotta wait and see :) thanks for reading.**


	3. Chapter 3

It was probably a couple of days since they got stranded on the strange planet..Shayera couldn't tell. Afterall, it was perpetually night here. To her, it seemed like an eternity. They hadn't said much to each other since the confrontation. She didn't want to talk to him about it again..because she didn't want to hear him tell her to move on again. She would never be able to do that.

He knew she was tired and hungry and terribly upset. He knew her better than anyone else. He wanted to embrace her..to stroke her beautiful face and let her know that he was there for her…with her. He sighed. She had her barrier up again. She was blocking him out.

He had spent most of the time reflecting on the past. On all the events that led to this day. Some joyful..some bitter…some very, very painful.

He missed her. He missed sparring with her. He missed debating with her. He missed the late night movie marathons in pyjamas. She always looked cute. He had cut it out so that her wings would not be restrained. He missed waking up and seeing her next to him, sleeping against him with her wings folded in. He always thought that she looked like an angel..his angel. He missed how she always kept him guessing…he never knew what she was up to. Always surprising him and playing pranks on him. His missed her laughter…he missed how her eyes would light up when something delighted her. He missed how they could talk about anything… and how they knew what each other was thinking or feeling without having to say a word.

She was asleep now. He sat down beside her and looked at her. As beautiful as ever. She looked peaceful…how he missed her. How he longed to touch her. When he saw her at the battle, he couldn't believe his eyes…she came back. He was so happy he thought his heart would burst with it. Then he saw that she was different. She was jaded. And to complicate things further…there was Mari.

He lay down beside her on the hard cold ground and closed his eyes, waiting for morpheus to claim him. He fell asleep in minutes.

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Diana walked into the monitor room with a mug of coffee in hand. Batman was there, working intently. He had spent most of his time working on fixing the Uranian gadget that could somehow open portals. It has been days.

"How's it going?" she asked as she sat beside him. He glanced over at her. "We're making progress. I have deciphered the problem…now I just need to put it all back together and power it up."

"That's great. I hope they're alright," She remarked.

She resumed her monitor duty, working side by side in companiable silence. She felt rejuvenated. Being close to him had that effect on her. It heightened all her senses.

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He felt an arm around him, snuggling against him. The warmth was inviting and he pulled her closer. His ran his hand down the length of her body….a woman's body. His desire was stirred. He caressed her.

She felt his arm…strong and warm..and his body against hers. It felt like heaven. She must be dreaming…again..about John. She touched his face, feeling his features. _How she missed him._ She longed to lie in his arms each night. If only this was real…She opened her eyes then.

"John!!" she shrieked. He bolted right up. " Shayera!! What the..," he touched his finger to his ear. "Ouch,..what you trying to do? Make me deaf?"

"Oh…I'm sorry. I was just surprised." She laid back down. Still in shock. He laid down too. "You ok?" She turned to him, "I'm fine."

They both turned their backs to each other, reeling with what just happened. He almost went and did it…she turned him on. And she was still trying to calm her nerves…for a minute it was as if her dream came to life.

He was trying to get back to sleep when he heard an unexpected sound that really surprised him this time. She was chuckling. He turned with incredulous eyes, only to be faced with feathers.

He sat up. "Shayera?" She turned…and laughed when she saw his confused face. "Oh its nothing John.."She managed between fits of laughter.." Its just that…I was dreaming and then the first thing I saw…" That's as far as she got before she convulsed into more laughter. John watched her, a smile touching his lips, and shook his head. _She was as unpredictable as ever._ That's one of the things he loved about her. She finally got a hold of herself and quietened .

"Sorry about that John. Goodnight." She turned her back to him again.

He laid down again…facing the black sky. He smiled again. He loved her laughter.

Just then, He saw a bright light ahead at a distance…He was on his feet in an instant. "Shayera!" She got up too.

"They found us!!" She exclaimed. "Wait, it could be dan…" But she was already gliding gracefully in the air.

He stood there for a few seconds watching her. _And impulsive as ever__…_With another smile, he took off and was soon trailing her.

They approached the light but couldn't see anything. It was too bright. They were being sucked into some sort of vortex.

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"Is it working?" Vixen asked. "We will have to wait and see. I hope this opens a portal in the correct dimension or it could bring back other things," J'ohn replied.

Vixen paced. _Come on John…Come back to me baby._

The rest of the league stood around, holding on to hope. Then there was an explosion of some sort. A flash of blinding white light before the portal closed. John and Shayera lay on the floor.

"Oh thank goodness," Diana exclaimed. "They need medical attention," the martian said.

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Shayera lifted heavy eyelids and looked around at the blurred surroundings. She blinked a few times and everything became clearer. She was in the medical room at the watchtower. She turned her head slowly at the next bed. John was looking at her. He smiled. She smiled back.

He opened his mouth to say something…

"Boo..you're awake," Mari was at his bedside in an instant. She threw her hands around his neck and pressed her lips against his.

John was taken by surprised. He pulled away and looked at her. Mari. "Hi Baby! Good to see you again." He turned to the next bed…it was empty.

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He hasn't seen her since the day they got back. He was always looking out for her but she was avoiding him. He knew it. It has been four days. He sat silently in the cafeteria. Mari was beside him chatting about something. He wasn't really listening. Probably going on about some hot new dress she bought..or some new gossip about another leaguer. Something….trivial.

Then his heart skipped a beat. She walked in…looked around. She saw them and immediately kept her eyes on the floor. She got her tray filled and left. Damn. He didn't want to hurt her. But he didn't want to hurt Mari either. Love is a double-edged sword.

Mari knew something was terribly wrong. John wasn't the same. She even put on her brand new dress slit right down the middle. It got all the male leaguers attention..but John didn't even blink. She wouldn't give up. He was hers.

Days passed. They didn't exchange a single word. They hardly saw each other. But absence makes the heart grow fonder. John refused to embrace it for fear of putting Mari through what he went through. Shayera hid away for fear of facing the wrath of another for breaking up a relationship. So they suffered in silence. John tried his best to be happy..or at least appear happy. Shayera hid away from everyone, choosing to remain within the safety of the room.

Destiny has decided that these two belong to each other but John insists on being defiant while Shayera refused to let go of her past mistakes and move on.

Maybe, all they need is a little help….

And it comes alright…only from the most unlikely people.


	4. Chapter 4

John stood by the window staring into the black skies, thinking of nothing in particular. These days he felt numb, lifeless…like everything has lost its meaning.

"I can't believe it. That stupid man!" He heard a voice behind him complain. He turned. It was the Black Canary. She seemed to be talking to herself. Then she looked up and saw him.

"Problem?" He asked.

"Tell me about it!"

Half an hour later, they were sitting side by side, staring out into the darkness, sharing a bag of popcorn.

"Men are stupid creatures!" Dinah exclaimed.

John Stewart raised an eyebrow. "I beg to differ."

She turned back at him. "Oh really? If you're so smart then why do you pretend to be happy?"

He looked incredulous. "What makes you think I _pretend_ to be happy? I am very happy."

"Well wise guy..if you're so happy what are you doing here this late, staring into nothing?"

He looked down. He didn't have an answer to that.

"That's the problem with Oliver too. He doesn't share his feelings. He doesn't want to bother me with them. But the thing is…I hate to see him upset and not be able to do anything about it. If only he'll let me in. He probably thinks that carrying his own cross is the manly thing to do…but it's too late for that now. When he chose to be with me, he should already have realized that it wouldn't always be good times….that we would go through bad times too..together."

She sighed.

"Why can't he see that I'm miserable? Why won't he acknowledge that he's miserable too? It's so frustrating."

John turned to her. "Maybe that's his nature. Maybe he has other things to consider. Maybe he just wants to protect you."

"You know John. That's the problem with men. They think they know what's best for us. But they don't. The truth is..women know exactly what they want. Men don't."

She sighed again.

"They are all about the greater good..and sparing feelings and bullshit. But love isn't supposed to be this way. Love is being true to yourself..listening to your heart. Sharing your joy and your pain. No one is perfect. There's no guarantee that you won't make mistakes, but love is about looking past that. If you really love someone…you would let them know how you feel, even if it shows that you're completely vulnerable. You would be able to trust the person enough to strip down and bare your soul."

Dinah stood up and turned to John. "Well I guess I just have to try again."

John sat alone and pondered. _She was right. _What did he want? Did he want Mari or Shayera? The answer came back to him loud and clear.

He wanted Shayera. He always did.

Then why? That came back to him too…he was afraid. Mari was the safe choice. He was afraid of being hurt again. He was afraid to let his guard down with Shayera because she had hurt him before. The pain was so poignant that although he could forgive her, he could not forget.

_But that's not what love is about._

Everyone makes mistakes. Love is looking past them.

He knew Shayera loved him. She made it clear. But she didn't want to intrude in his relationship with Vixen.

What about Mari? He was fond of her. He had thought she could replace Shayera in his heart.

_But he had already given away his heart._

He had to face it all now..he had to be true to himself. He refused to think about this because of his fears but a true soldier faces his deepest fears head on.

He didn't want Mari. He wanted Shayera. His pretense would just hurt all three of them. He had to right his wrongs.

John stood up. His head clearer.

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Shayera too was staring into the sky. She was in the monitor room but wasn't really monitoring anything.

"You ok? I could take over you know." The Green Arrow walked up beside her.

"What? Oh…I'm sorry. I didn't realize…"Shayera quickly stood and turned back to the monitor.

Oliver Queen laid a hand on her shoulder. "I know you must be having a tough time with the comeback and all. But you know what..i've heard a lot about you. And from what I know…you're truly a warrior. Take heart."

Shayera turned, and smiled at him, her eyes liquid with tears. Words failed her. She felt a pain in her heart and turmoil. He hugged her then.

"The Green Lantern is a fool. You know..men have never been good at expressing their feelings. It's a ..flaw of nature. Sometimes, all they need is a woman to pound them on the head before they come to their senses. Everyone knows you love him…he needs to know it too. You have nothing to lose Shayera. But don't give up. You know what they say…a true warrior never goes down without a fight. I'll take over here. Go get him." He winked at her.

She smiled back at him and nodded.

Walking along the corridor, Shayera started to get cold feet. What if he rejects her? Will she be able to take the humiliation? The answer came to her.

_I have nothing more to lose. I__ have already lost everything._

Then she knew she had to do it. He was the only chance she had for a future. He was all she knew in this new world where everyone looked at her with skepticism, with anger, with hatred, with mistrust. She needed him.

Her steps led her to the viewing gallery. He was there. It surprised her how she just knew he'd be there and he was. He turned and looked at her…equally surprised.

They looked at each other for a long moment.

"We need to talk Shayera." He said quietly.

"Yes we do." She took a seat and looked up at him.

He paced a few times before stopping in front of her.

"I love you Shayera. I always have. I never got with Mari to hurt you. I'd never do that. I wanted to get over the pain. I thought you left me forever. When you came back, I was afraid to tell you this. I didn't want to hurt Mari and I tried to hold on to the relationship. It's all futile. My heart doesn't agree. I love you Shayera and if love is about second chances…I want another chance. I'm sorry I couldn't let go of my hurt to let you back into my heart." His tears flowed and he dropped to his knees.

"I knew that it hurt you to see me with her. It ate away at my heart everytime I saw the pain in your eyes but my courage failed me. But I learnt a valuable lesson today. Love is about letting go of your fears and just taking a leap of faith. I want to forget everything that happened between us. I can't believe all this time I held onto the past and almost lost my future."

He looked into her beautiful face..now teary.

"There it is..i'm baring my soul to you. I am trusting you with my feeling again. This is it…it is my innermost feelings. Give me another chance."

She threw her arms around his neck then. "John. I love you so much. I should be the one begging for another chance. I never lied about my feelings for you. You are all I have."

They cried together…cleansing tears which washed away the hurts of the past…bringing forth new life.

She looked up at him..he kissed her. Suddenly, it felt like everything jarred back into place. For the past few months, it felt like they were floating around in limbo but now for the first time, they actually felt the ground beneath their feet. It felt right.

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Shayera and John walked into the cafeteria hand in hand. They spotted Mari immediately. She threw them a dirty look. She didn't take the breakup well at all. She had shouted and begged and cried but to no avail. Then she started giving them both the cold shoulder.

Now, she turned to the Flash, seated beside her and brought him close, pressing her lips against him.

Shayera turned to John and chuckled. He shook his head in amusement. "Amateur. Even Diana does a better job of making Bruce jealous." He turned and caught Dinah's eyes and nodded his silent thanks. She winked back and turned to peck her lover on the cheek.


End file.
